Revenge of the Rooster
by Devon Shea
Summary: Arthur has to deal with a difficult petition during open Court. PLEASE NOTE: This fic deals with mental instability descending into madness. It also refers to the past killing of an animal. If either of these is not good for you, please do not read further.


This fic deals with mental instability descending into madness. It also refers to the past killing of an animal. If either of these is not good for you, please do not read further.

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Merlin rolled his eyes behind Arthur's throne as he listened to the petitioner's complaint. Manfred swore that his neighbor had cursed him and wanted to see the man punished. Merlin could almost hear the boredom dripping from Arthur's tongue as he asked the man before him, "And explain to me again how you've been cursed?"

"Every time I walk past his flock the rooster crows at me and chases me, Sire."

"So, a territorial rooster is your only proof that you've been cursed?" Merlin didn't have to be standing in front of the throne to envision the disdainful look on Arthur's face.

The petitioner shook his head, "No, Sire, it's all the animals."

"All the chickens of the flock?"

"Every animal I encounter hisses at me or barks or does something."

Arthur pinched his nose and barely restrained a chuckle. He had a feeling the animals were just being perceptive and recognized a walking piece of horse dung when they saw one. "Every animal reacts to you? And you say this is a curse or hex and your neighbor put it on you?"

Manfred nodded earnestly. "Yes, Sire. Exactly."

"And, you, Telly, is it?" The man being accused of sorcery looked more annoyed as he nodded briefly than frightened. "What do you say to this accusation?"

"He's touched in the head, Your Majesty. I haven't cursed him beyond calling him rude names when he complains about my flock. They're how I make my living and how my parents did before me. He moved into the house next to me knowing there was a flock of chickens. I've never hexed him." Telly crossed his arms as he spoke, glaring at his neighbor. "He spends all his time complaining about my roosters crowing, well, they crow when the flock is threatened and they don't trust him."

"And the other animals?"

Telly shrugged, "Who knows, your majesty? I deal with chickens, not cats and dogs." He scratched his chin, "Although Widow Kelly's nanny goat did butt him in the arse the last time she got loose. I think he ended up in a pigsty."

Merlin saw the corner of Arthur's mouth lift slightly before he managed to crush the smile. "I see." Arthur turned to Manfred, "I'll be honest, i'm not hearing any real evidence that would convict your neighbor of witchcraft, Manfred. It sounds more like the animals just don't like you. Is your own pet reaching badly?"

Manfred scoffed, "I wouldn't have a pet if you paid me. Filthy, disgusting things. Animals are only good for burden or food."

"I see." Arthur rubbed his forehead, "I am dismissing this petition. I simply don't believe it's witchcraft. Thank you for your diligence in trying to-"

"But, Sire, I'm telling you he cursed me out of revenge." Manfred interrupted the king as he spoke, causing Arthur to send him one of his nastiest glares. One simply did not interrupt a king as he spoke. Merlin brought his hand up to hide his grin as he waited for Arthur to lower the boom on the impertinent idiot. "I'm telling you it was revenge."

Telly snorted, "I don't care enough about you to get any revenge on you, you moron. Besides, what would I need to avenge? Your blather?"

Manfred turned on the chicken farmer and pointed at him, "You knew it was me! You've been biding your time."

The farmer turned to the king and shrugged, "I have no idea what he's on about, sire."

"That stupid rooster! You trained it to crow at the worst times of the day! You knew I wrung its watched neck." Manfred's face turned purely nasty and spittle flew from his mouth as he raged at his neighbor.

Telly stiffened up. "That was you? I had to buy another one to replace him!"

Arthur sighed as he motioned to the guards nearby. They stepped closer to the two men, both of whom were now angry at the other. The guards stepped in just as Telly swung a fist at the raging Manfred. Arthur rubbed his temple. "Telly, go home. Manfred, you owe Telly the coin to pay for the rooster he had to replace. Guards, take Manfred to the square and put him in the stocks for an hour. Just because you don't like getting woken up by a rooster doesn't mean you can kill someone else's animals. Manfred, if I were you, I'd look for another place to live. Find a home that isn't near livestock."

Telly had calmed down quite a bit when the guards grabbed him, and nodded at the king's words. Manfred started shouting again. "He did it! He's evil!"

Merlin leaned over and whispered, "I don't think he's quite sane, sire."

Arthur nodded. "Manfred, calm down or you'll be put in the dungeons instead of the stocks."

He waited a minute but Manfred didn't calm down at all, still screaming about evil and witchcraft and cursed animals. Arthur shook his head. "Bring him to the dungeons. Maybe a day down there will cool him off."

The guard holding Manfred's squirming body nodded and looked at the guard still holding a now calm Telly. Telly's guard let go of him and grabbed Manfred's arm so the two of them could march him from the throne room. Telly looked at the king with an expression of pure shock. "I never thought he was that insane, sire. I knew he was a bit touched in the head, but not that much." He gulped.

"I'll have the court physician look at him while he's in the dungeons. Maybe he can do something." Arthur waved at Telly. "You will receive your recompense as soon as Manfred is well again."

"Sire, it was a year and a half ago. I could use that money, but if Manfred needs it to buy medicine or something, I'd really rather he keep it."

Arthur smiled a bit. "Very generous of you, especially when you consider he just accused you of witchcraft."

Telly shrugged. "Your majesty, I know I should have been worried, but his accusation was just too mental to be believed, you know? Anyone could see he was a bit, well, I guess a lot crazed."

The king nodded. "Go home, Telly. Gaius will determine what treatment he needs."

Bowing, Telly left the throne room. Arthur looked around at the faces of the courtiers, some still in a state of shock at the man who'd been dragged out of the room, and others looking very bored. "I think we're done here for the day. You are all dismissed." He stood and left the throne room, Merlin a step behind him.

When they got to Arthur's chambers, the king bypassed his comfortable chair and threw himself on the bed. "What the bloody hell was that?"

Merlin busied himself tidying up things he hadn't gotten to that morning and shrugged. "It looked like Manfred was, to put it bluntly, nuts."

Arthur glared at him from his position on the bed. "Really? I hadn't noticed that, Merlin."

"You asked." Merlin didn't bother dodging the pillow that came winging from the direction of the bed because it didn't even come close to him, landing about six feet from him. He also didn't bother picking it up since he had the list of Arthur's appointments for the day in his hands. He just looked at the pillow on the floor and smirked.

Before Arthur could respond, there was a knock at the door. He stood quickly and called out for the person to enter. It was one of the guards from the throne room, an older man named Red. Red bowed and waited for Arthur's response before he spoke. "Sire, we brought the townsman to the dungeons. He was still raving when we left him there."

"Fetch Gaius and have him look at Manfred. Maybe he can suggest something to help the man."

"Yes, sire."

Merlin sighed as he shuffled the papers in his hands. "You realize Gaius probably won't be able to do anything, right?"

"I know, Merlin." Arthur walked over to the desk and sat in his chair, pulling the papers from Merlin's hands. "But if he can, then we won't have to send the man to Mother Hubbard's." The house outside the city was already home to three people who had been deemed unable to live on their own.

Merlin shrugged. "He might have to go there. They'll take care of him well enough." He thought back. "Manfred is a baker, I think. He can continue doing that under care."

"Once he's calmed down enough, that is."

"Yes. I know Gaius has medicine that will at least do that. I have to mix them up often enough."

An hour later another knock was heard on the door and Merlin looked up from the chair he'd been perched on while he and Arthur went over a speech the king had to give later in the week. "Come in," Arthur called out.

Gaius entered the room, his hands in their habitual place in his sleeves. Sometimes Arthur wondered if he did that just to hide any rude gestures that might be accompanying the Eyebrow of Doom, as Merlin called it. "Your Majesty."

"Gaius, how is the baker?"

Gaius shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't help him, sire. I have given him a sedative, but he is not likely to be able to go home to his family for quite a while."

"He doesn't have any family, Gaius, and his apparent mania has made him no friends."

Gaius' mouth tightened. "If he cannot be taken care of by family or friends, then I see no alternative but the care of Mother Hubbard."

Arthur nodded. "I thought that might be the case. When he is calm enough to understand, please explain it to him. I will leave instructions with the guard that they are to take him back to his house and pack his things with him and escort him to her home." Arthur turned to Merlin, "Draft a letter to her explaining what happened. Maybe in time he'll be well enough to return to the city, but as you said, Merlin, he can still at least bake for the house and be productive that way."

"Yes, sire." Merlin and Gaius both spoke at the same time. Gaius bowed his head before he left the room and Merlin took a scrap of birch bark and drafted the note Arthur would sign.

A few days later, Manfred had calmed down enough that the guards could escort him to Mother Hubbard's. One of the other guards was going to pack all of his belongings and bring them to the house. Gaius had concluded that it would probably not be a good thing to be confronted by the animals that had set him off to begin with. It was going to be risky enough putting him in a house that had a few animals to support it as it was.

Arthur was passing the hall with Sir Leon when Manfred was escorted by. The baker paused and bowed a bit as he passed. "Sire." He seemed calm. Arthur thought to himself, _Maybe he'll be fine with a bit of respite._

He was turning away to listen to what Sir Leon was saying when he heard a rooster crow in the distance and out of the corner of his eye he saw Manfred stiffen up as he walked.

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Merlin belongs to Shine and the BBC.


End file.
